Friday, January 25, 2008

Designer Spotlight: Brian Reyes

Relatively young but already gaining himself a celebrity following, Brian Reyes is a self-taught designer who gained his experience working for Ralph Lauren, Michael Kors and Oscar de la Renta. He left Oscar de la Renta at the age of 24 to strike out on his own.

Spring 2006 was his first collection to be shown since going solo. Although his first collection was mixed reviews, he won the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award in 2006. This award is the equivalent of Best New Artist for the Grammy's. Past recipients for this award includes Proenza Schouler and Zac Posen.

The dresses below are part of Reyes' 2007 Spring collection. I love the details that make each of these dresses special. The Ruffle Wrap Dress (left) is quirky and sexy. The semi-sheer silk dress gives the dress a flirty appeal and the ruffles give it a hint of romance. The Strapless Wrap Dress (right), with its tight bodice and a slightly voluminous skirt, is sophisticated and utterly feminine. The details on the back of the dress (not shown here) gives the dress a little bit of edge that I almost mistook it for a L.A.M.B. dress.